


Kill the Devil

by fangirlingtodeath513



Series: Season 13 Codas [19]
Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - Apocalypse, Apocalypse world, Canon-Typical Violence, Depictions of Shock, Episode: s13e21 Beat the Devil, Episode: s13e21 Coda, Grief/Mourning, Group Hugs, M/M, Minor Character Death, Post-Episode: s13e21 Beat the Devil, Post-Episode: s13e21 Coda, Temporary Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-05-04
Updated: 2018-05-04
Packaged: 2019-05-02 00:59:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14533242
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirlingtodeath513/pseuds/fangirlingtodeath513
Summary: They stumble through the rift; Sam first, then himself, then Gabriel, and Dean last. Unluckily for them, the rift has decided to dump them over the side of a hill, so Sam tumbles down, followed by him and Gabriel. There’s a pause before Dean tumbles down and lands face-first in Castiel’s lap, his mouth inches from the zipper of his dress pants.





	Kill the Devil

**Author's Note:**

> If you watched the episode, you know who the MCD is. Skip to the end notes if you want to see the minor character death.
> 
>  
> 
> Just a few things I wanted to add to this episode, even though I enjoyed it immensely.
> 
>  
> 
> [rebloggable link on tumblr](https://fangirlingtodeath513.tumblr.com/post/173581427949/kill-the-devil-a-13x21-coda-read-here-on-ao3)

They stumble through the rift; Sam first, then himself, then Gabriel, and Dean last. Unluckily for them, the rift has decided to dump them over the side of a hill, so Sam tumbles down, followed by him and Gabriel. There’s a pause before Dean tumbles down and lands face-first in Castiel’s lap, his mouth inches from the zipper of his dress pants. He can feel Sam and Gabriel’s eyes on them and it takes a moment for Dean to move, but he hastily shoves himself backwards, landing flat on his ass.

 

Sam snorts and pushes himself to his feet, brushing the dirt off his clothes. “You and Cas need a minute? We’ve got limited time but there’re some things in this life I’d just rather not see.”

 

Dean’s cheeks are bright red and, when he glances over, he can see the smirk tilting the corner of Gabriel’s mouth. “You stuck the landing, Dean-o. I’m sure Castiel appreciated it, even if he’s not as used to human customs.”

 

Castiel simply rolls his eyes, pushing himself to his feet and offering Dean a hand. The hunter takes it wordlessly and Castiel tugs him to his feet, plucking a few leaves from his hair. “Let’s find Jack and Mary.”

 

 **·     ·     ·** ✤      **·     ·     ·**

 

As an angel, he’s more perceptive to certain things. He can see the trails of the wind, if he chooses. He can see the souls of those around him; shining beacons that prove their humanity. And, more often than he’d like to admit, he’s seen a Winchester die. He’s watched their soul leave their body, watch them succumb to the life of a hunter. This time it’s Sam. He’s down the side tunnel in a second, chasing after the group of vampires dragging Sam away. But it’s useless. He doesn’t have enough power for this, and he knows Gabriel doesn’t. He sees the last few feeble beats of his heart, the last desperate pumps of the muscle trying to bring its host back to life, but it’s pointless. Sam Winchester is dead.

 

He stands there a moment, processing, before he turns and walks back the way he came.

 

Dean’s rushing toward him, terror in his eyes. “Sam-”

 

He stops him with a hand on his chest, shaking his head. “He’s gone.”

 

Dean stares at him and he can almost see the neurons in the hunter’s brain firing, and then he’s trying to shove his way past Castiel. “No!”

 

Cas catches him easily, pulling him away from the tunnel. “Dean! We don’t have time.” His hand presses against Dean’s chest again, his palm flat over the hunter’s heart. “Dean. We can’t save him.” He can feel each and every beat, each and every erratic breath, and he can see the fight drain from Dean’s entire body. He can feel the tears in his own eyes but he ignores them in favor of guiding Dean back onto the path to Jack and Mary. He sends a silent thought to Sam, wishing he could do something more helpful.

 

Dean’s in shock. Logically, he knows that. They made it out of the tunnel with the other human, but Dean’s still silent. Hasn’t said a word since Castiel turned him around and pointed him in the opposite direction of Sam. He’s barely even glanced around and, when he has, it’s to keep from falling on his face. He watches warily as Maggie tries to apologize to Dean, who barely spares her a glance before continuing on. He glances at Gabriel, sighing softly and resting a hand on Maggie’s back gently. “He appreciates it, I assure you. Dean’s not very good at expressing his feelings, especially after emotional trauma.”

 

 **·     ·     ·** ✤      **·     ·     ·**

 

 _Sam, I’m… I’m so sorry. I watched your heart stop. I don’t have nearly enough power to bring you back, and neither does Gabriel. We’ll come back for your body, I promise you that._ A pause. _And I promise to keep him safe. No matter what._

 

Dean. He’s talking about Dean. It’s… it’s Castiel’s voice. But how…?

 

He finds his answer soon enough. Once he gets his bearings in the room, a single look down shows himself floating over his own body. That’s… concerning. What happened? Why can’t he remember anything? He remembers walking into the tunnel, reaching the cavern and then… right. The vampires. They ripped his throat out and dragged him away.

 

He wonders what happens now. He’s been dead before, of course, but he never remembers this. Never remembers what it’s like to be apart from his body. He hears footsteps, and he has the urge to hide but quickly realizes that whoever it is won’t be able to see him. Well… his body, they’ll see. But not _him_.

 

Oh, how wrong he is. Lucifer’s eyes meet his and Sam feels a shudder run through his ghostly form. “Sam, how nice to see you again. Not under the circumstances, obviously, but perhaps I can… remedy that situation.” He smirks, and Sam feels like he could throw up despite not having a functioning digestive system anymore. He feels an odd tugging sensation and sees Lucifer’s eyes flare red and then-

 

 **·     ·     ·** ✤      **·     ·     ·**

 

“Kill him.” Dean says with a sneer. Sam steps out of the way quickly as Gabriel and Castiel advance. They stop, though, each grabbing onto one of Lucifer’s arms. Dean taps Sam’s shoulder gently, holding the archangel blade out to him. “Gabriel gave it enough juice for it to work without him holding it.”

 

Sam takes it, ever so slowly, turning his gaze to Lucifer. “Do we have anymore vials?” Dean holds an open one out toward him, so Sam nods and makes a slit in Lucifer’s throat. They drain him of as much grace as they can carry, leaving him more human than he’s comfortable with.

 

In the end, the revenge doesn’t help. It _does_ help to see the face of his tormenter devoid of any expression, and to see his wings burned into the dusty ground below them.

 

He stands there for a moment, letting the relief wash over him before handing the blade back to Gabriel. The archangel stows in carefully, nodding once at Sam. Sam manages a gentle smile back, turning to Mary, Dean and Jack.

 

Mary reaches him first. He drops his backpack on the ground and wraps his arms as tight around her as he can. She tucks her face against his chest and despite how long she’s been here and the rough conditions, she still smells so distinctly like _home_ that he could cry. Jack reaches them next and wraps his arms around the pair of them. Dean claps him on the shoulder and Castiel apologized profusely for not saving him. Just another day of being a Winchester, he supposes.

 

They settle into the camp with Mary and Jack. They’ve got people to help and a world to save, but tonight? Tonight, it’s just them, the safe people surrounding them, and the promise of a future with the people he cares about. They’ve got a lot of work to do, but a single glance around tells him that it’ll be more than worth it.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on Tumblr [here(:](https://fangirlingtodeath513.tumblr.com/)
> 
>  
> 
> **Please don’t post my works anywhere without my express written permission.**
> 
> Minor character death: Lucifer, not explicit.


End file.
